Author: Skip Moen, Ph.D.

  • The Disney God

    In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Genesis 1:1 NASB In the beginning – Recently we examined Heschel’s claim that this verse is not a proto-scientific statement of causality.  It doesn’t tell us anything about how the world came into existence.  Rather, it is a statement that God is alive, that He is sovereign,…

  • The Good, the True, and the Beautiful

    Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will praise You.  Psalm 63:3  NASB Better than – kî ṭôb pens the Psalmist.  “Better than.”  Better than what?  mē ḥayyîm, he replies. ḥesed is kî ṭôb mē ḥayyîm.  ḥesed is better than life! That is a powerful claim!  Do we really think that ḥesed is better…

  • Spelling Bee

    God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”  Exodus 3:14  NASB I AM – Is this the biblical definition of God?  Does He reveal His true essence in this conundrum of consonant/vowels?  When you read…

  • An Italics Problem

    I thought I should explain why some Today’s Word editions end up with no space between a word in italics and the next work (likethis).  There is a bug in the WordPress program which intermittently and arbitrarily makes this mistake.  It’s not in the original posted work and it isn’t uniform, so Mark and I…

  • Worshipping the Roman God

    And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:12b  NIV Gentle whisper – You know the story.  Elijah calls down fire from heaven.  He proves YHVH is the only God.  He slaughters Jezebel’s four hundred false prophets.  Victory is his.  Then a single, wicked woman sends him a threat and Elijah, “ran for his…

  • Compiano

    The Grimaldis, the Royal Family of Monaco, have their roots right here. A marble plate hung on the castle wall reports all the royal families that have inhabited the castle since the year 800 AD.

  • Speed Limit

    In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Genesis 1:1 NASB In the beginning – Abraham Heschel’s two volume work, The Prophets, is undoubtedly one of the most important theological texts you can read.  It’s not simply an analysis of the message of the prophets like you would find in commentaries.  It is a tour…

  • Justice Out of Balance

    He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.  Psalm 103:10  NASB According to  – Is God just?  Frankly, I hope not.  Justice means the application of the law without bias.  It is personified in the famous blind lady holding the balance scales. If God blindly measures me…